Blunt Force
by DarkRedWillow
Summary: Castle thinks he and Kate are done. A thing of the past. At least that's what he thinks until the writer receives a news that changes everything, forcing him to confront his greatest fear once again. SPOILERS up to Headhunters.
1. Chapter 1

Ok, so the past few weeks have been crazy and I've been feeling like a headless chicken running around trying to get everything done, and because the last episodes of Castle have all been driving us past crazy, this wouldn't stop bugging me. Yeah, yeah, it's another past "47 Seconds" and "The Limey" fic, but from a different angle. Touches "Headhunters" a bit, but this should be read more like a finale fic. Shouldn't be more than 2-3 chapters either, so there it is.

Castle stilled at the sound. After four years, he could have recognized them anywhere; whether it was one step or a full speed run. _Those_ heels.

Unconsciously standing straighter, Castle took a step away from Slaughter, his new partner, and listened.

The steps were hurried, laced with a heaviness that echoed through the precinct underground parking. It didn't sound like she wasn't late somewhere, or eager to get back home. If Castle didn't know any better, he would have said that the clicking of her heels sounded…angry.

Moving to his left when he realized it was the way she was coming from, Castle waited and, soon enough the familiar face of Detective Kate Beckett came into view, several car lengths in front of him.

Another set of footsteps told the writer that someone else was coming her way, the steps lighter and obviously running this time.

Castle was surprised when Ryan stopped rather clumsily next to Beckett a second later, a hand on his side and breathing hard.

"Ricky, you coming?"

Castle shushed Slaughter, his eyes focused on the scene forty feet before him. He couldn't quite hear what was being said but he knew Ryan was currently swimming in dangerous territory, judging by the way he physically recoiled from Beckett after he'd spoke.

She was still as beautiful. Even more so, if the writer was honest with himself. His whole body was aching to talk to her, to touch her. He wanted nothing more than graze his hands over her shoulders until they would relax; Kate's body at the moment was so tense, so taut that Castle could feel his back tense and cramp as well just by looking at her.

"No!"

Castle snapped out of his distracted mind and glanced back at Kate, who was positively seething. He didn't react as Slaughter came to stop next to him, lured by the ongoing fight as well. "That the detective chick you were busy 'musing' before? She's feisty. And hot."

Castle grunted but didn't answer, his heart jumping when Kate disappeared from his sight for a second. Their voices were getting louder, finally, and he froze as he heard them clearly for the first time.

"I don't care, Ryan! She kicked me out! She doesn't want me there for the next week, so you and Espo are on your own. I'm done."

"Beckett-"

"Don't Beckett me! I am done, okay? I'm sick of everyone benching me, and pushing me away. You all got your wish, because I'm going."

"What?" Castle's voice had been soft so no one but Slaughter had heard, but at this point the man didn't care. She was leaving? No, that wasn't right, how could she be leaving, how could she be giving up when she had won. He'd left so there was no reason for her to leave as well…

What Ryan said next fell flat in Castle's ears because all he could do was watch as Kate hastily put her hair up in a bun before pulling a helmet over her head. Her motorcycle helmet.

She was going to leave, angry and upset, on her damned motorcycle? Hell no.

Castle stepped forward just as his new partner grabbed him by the jacket and pulled. Freeing himself with a frustrated tug of his arm, Castle jumped when the loud roar of his former partner suddenly filled the parking. "Come on, Ricky, the fight is over. We have work to do."

"No, I-" His protests were too little, too late. When he turned around again Beckett was gone and Ryan was trotting back towards the elevator, his phone pressed tightly against his ear.

_Shit._

"You okay, dad? Why are you sitting in the living room in the dark?"

Castle looked up into his daughter's concerned eyes and mustered a smile, hoping it wouldn't seem too fake. "I'm good, pumpkin, just tired."

A pair of blue eyes, all too similar to his own, stared him down briefly before softening. "Rough day?"

Now it was Castle's turn to stare suspiciously. "Weren't you working with Lanie today?" He deflected the question.

"Yeah, so?"

"So, nothing."

Alexis watched her father closely, wondering if he would be up to talking or not. Something had came up during the day, something she really needed to share with him. "Hey, dad?"

He sighed just as the front door opened and Martha waltzed in, a bright smile on her face. "Hello, my darlings, how-" She quieted down as she took in the long faces of her son and granddaughter, her good mood evaporated. What happened?"

"Nothing."

Martha rolled her eyes and squished herself next to Alexis, wrapping her arm around the girl's shoulders. "I see. That's why you both look like death on legs."

"Don't talk about death, mother." Castle shuddered, unable to hide it from his family.

Alexis frowned and glanced at her grandmother, worried. "Dad, what's going on? Did something happen at the precinct today? Is-"

"Don't. Don't say her name. It's all fine, I'm just tired."

Martha looked about to say something but a sharp glare from her son made her rethink her choice of chatting partner. "So, kiddo, how was your day? Anything interesting happening with you?"

Alexis sighed and made herself more comfortable on the couch. "Hardly. Dr. Parish doesn't talk much these days, she mostly mumbles to herself and she's been spending a lot of time on the phone."

"Well, she has a busy job, she's bound to have to make calls at some point, you know to get the investigations going." Martha ignored that Castle's interest had slightly picked up at hearing the ME's name, inwardly sighing for the situation he and his muse had put themselves in. Again. "Has she been teaching you anyway? Because if she hasn't been-"

"No, no she does, that's not the point. She's been talking and texting a lot with…a friend who's not doing too well lately."

"Oh. Well, that's too bad, really. Has she talked to you about it?"

"Stop it, both of you." Castle's jaw clenched tightly. "New rule in this house. No talk about work. None. No talk about cases, or bodies, or partners, nothing. This," he waved at the loft, "is now a work free zone."

"What about your office, this is where you work, you know."

Castle stared at his daughter, far from amused. "Apart from my office."

"Fine." Alexis sulked as she grabbed the remote on the coffee table and turned the tv on, flipping through channels distractedly until her father's hand was on her and squeezing tightly. "What, what is it?"

"Go back! No, the other way, go back now!" Castle yelled louder than necessary, his eyes glued on the tv.

The writer's already tensed frame went rigid as Alexis put the news channel back on. "What? Dad, you're scaring us, what's going on?"

Castle didn't answer. His widened eyes were stuck on the image of a traffic accident that had occurred a few hours before, involving a car and a motorcycle. A black Harley.

Martha scooted closer and shared a look with Alexis as he jumped off the couch and started mumbling about bikes and fights, worrying them. "Richard, what's going on?"

Castle shook his head as he stilled, stunned. His hands were suddenly all over his jeans, searching through his pockets but not finding anything. "Shit!"

"What? Dad, what's going on?" Alexis demanded louder but he was already gone to his study, not listening. Her grandmother's hand on hers brought her back to the tv, where a clearer shot of the scene of the accident was being shown. A sense of uneasiness steadily grew in the teenager's stomach but she couldn't fathom why, until her father came back, his hands shaking and his face as pale as a ghost. "Richard?"

"She…hers…I." Castle waved helplessly between his phone and the tv, unable to voice the news.

Already freaked out as it was, Alexis moved to where her father was frozen and took his phone, searching through his voicemails. Pulling up the most recent one, she put the speaker phone on and shot her grandmother a dreadful look.

"_Castle, it's Ryan. Listen, um…Beckett's been in an accident. We're not sure what happened yet, if she lost control of her bike or if the car is at fault, but…it's not looking so good. You should come. I don't care how much of an immature ass you are right now, she needs you. I think she's going to be okay but she's in surgery right now, so…yeah. Please come. She's at the Presbyterian hospital."_

"Oh, dad…"

"I knew it. I knew it was going to happen, I-"

Martha stood up as well, confused. "What do you mean, dear?"

Castle took a shaky breath, blinking rapidly to chase down the tears that had crept down on him. "I saw her leave today. She and Ryan were fighting in the precinct parking, she was saying that everybody kept pushing her away and that she was done and then she left on her motorcycle."

Two horrified set of eyes were suddenly staring at him. "What? No, you don't mean that…"

"What? No! No, but I don't know, Alexis…I don't know what to think anymore." Castle sighed. He was still standing in the middle of the living room awkwardly, anxious waves pouring off of him. "I don't know if I should go. Things are…complicated enough as it is right now."

"No, you have to go!" Alexis shouted and blushed, startled by her outburst. "I just mean…it's her, and you love her, dad. Are you really going to walk away when she's going to need you the most?"

Castle frowned, stepping closer to his daughter. "What is this all about, Alexis? You and Beckett haven't been on the best of terms lately, or at least you haven't been. You've been giving her the cold shoulder for months but now you want me to go to her again? Why?"

Alexis blushed, avoiding the other occupants' inquiring stare. "I…might have heard some stuff today."

"What do you mean, some stuff?" Castle winced at how pleading his voice had sounded, but he couldn't care less. All he needed was one reason, _one _legitimate reason to justify running to the hospital for the woman he loved.

"I, I was coming back from the lab with the results of the toxicology tests Dr. Parish had- anyway, I heard voices so I stopped."

Martha observed her granddaughter with an odd glint in her eyes that suspiciously looked like pride. "You eavesdropped?"

"No! Well, I didn't mean to. I recognized Detective Beckett's voice so I just wanted to stay out of the way because I didn't want to see or talk to her, but…"

Castle leaned closer, desperately needing the rest of the story. "But what?"

"She was crying. I couldn't make up everything that was being said, but Detective Beckett was crying and saying that she was too late, that she had screwed up everything. She doesn't even know that you know, dad. She thinks you got tired of waiting so you decided to move on without bothering to tell her."

Castle was speechless. His brain drawing a blank at his daughter's words, he stumbled to the couch and dropped heavily on it, his mind reeling. "How can she say I got tired of waiting, she doesn't feel the same. She wouldn't have kept it from me all this time if she had felt anything about me."

Alexis sat close to her dad and took his hand, her voice gentle. "I know, that's what I thought but, as much as it kind of annoys me to admit it, it all fits, dad. For years you've been telling us how hard it was for Det- Kate to get her to open up and share anything remotely personal with others. You've told us about that speech she gave you on the swing, remember it? It all fits."

"I'm not excusing what she did, and she's going to make it up to you, to us for lying about it, but dad…she loves you. She said so to Dr. Parish."


	2. Chapter 2

Wow, I was stunned by the amount of alerts and favorites notifications tonight, lol. I can't imagine what it would've been like if everyone had reviewed it as well….even if it's just a few words, it is always highly appreciated, so a big thank you to those who did review!

* * *

Kate thought it was some kind of sick, cruel joke when the sound of a heart monitor tore her out of the drugged slumber she was in.

For the second time in less than a year, the over brightness of the lights, the overwhelming smell of disinfectant and the dim sounds of voices and beeping machines welcomed her back into the land of the living. And, as the previous time, it wasn't a pleasant one.

She was faintly aware that she couldn't move; her limbs were as heavy as lead and felt foreign, as if they weren't attached to her anymore. The pounding in her head was enough for her to want to beg someone to knock her out again just so she wouldn't have to suffer through it; but what she finally reacted to was the long, stiff and painful breathing tube that felt like it had been forcefully shoved down her throat.

Even as part of her knew it was in her best interest to stay calm, the rest of her panicked and her throat instinctively closed up on the tube. Flashes of when she had nearly drowned in the Hudson sent her into near hyperventilation and she choked, her battered body suddenly coming to life as she thrashed, desperate for oxygen.

A cold pressure on her forehead dimly registered after a moment and, as Kate struggled through the medicated fog she was in, it took her another moment, this one longer, to comprehend that the pressure she was now feeling on her shoulders and thighs were restraining hands.

Kate whimpered as a bright light was being flashed in her eyes, the harshness of it bringing her to tears. Overwhelmed by the sudden overstimulation her body was being submitted to, panic increased tenfold as she felt different hands on her; the first ones had been cold but soft, soothing. The ones on her at that particular moment, however, felt odd and had a smell that made the detective nauseous; focusing on their feeling, Kate soon realized that the smell was latex, which meant that the hands currently pining her down and holding her face so it wouldn't move either belonged to doctors or nurses, or both.

Distorted voices were talking to her but she couldn't make out what they were saying, her brain too busy concentrating on her inability to breathe by herself. A sharp tugging in her throat took her by surprise and she choked again, and then she could finally breathe, her trachea free of the plastic and mechanically-induced air.

Kate could have cried in relief when the soothing hands were suddenly back, stroking her cheek, jaw, her bottom lip. With the freedom of breathing by herself came the pain but, instead of fighting it, Kate focused on the hands. The nice, comforting, friendly hands.

As her body relaxed, no doubt because of whatever drug one of the gloved torturers had spiked her IV with, Kate was finally able to focus on the remaining voice. At first she thought the painkillers must have been much stronger than she remembered them to be because she thought she knew that voice. She had spent four years either despising it or loving it and now that she was hearing it again, her heart twisted painfully in her chest, fearing it was an hallucination.

The hand that had been gently stroking her left thigh was suddenly back in her hair when she tried to talk, soothing away her frustration when nothing but a faint mewl escaped her lips.

Kate realized she must have been getting more irritated than she thought when the hand moved from her hair to her forehead, and felt a soft thumb softly soothing away the frown that had been contorting her pained features. "Shhh, don't talk. I know you're tired sweetie, but can you open your eyes for me? Just for a little bit?"

'Sweetie?' It wasn't before the voice had asked her to open her eyes that Kate realized that she had yet to open them. The voice seemed to have sensed her hesitation because a few seconds later Kate felt the light dim through her eyelids, the scorching red quickly changing into a dull yellowish light. "Come on, Kate, please. I know you can do it, just let me see your gorgeous eyes, okay?"

Castle. The voice was definitely Castle's, Kate discovered with a flutter of the heart. After a few failed attempts, she finally succeeded in open both of her eyes long enough to see a blurry face inches away from hers. She wouldn't have been able to tell with absolute certainty who it was if it wasn't for the piercing blue eyes that was watching her intensely. "Castle?"

Her voice wasn't any better than before, the writer's name that came out from her mouth barely above a broken whisper, but judging from the smile brightening Castle's face upon hearing it, she still did good.

* * *

The voice was still there when she woke up again. It was softer this time, and the rhythm with which it spoke confused her at first but as Kate listened, she recognized it. The words, the names…

Founding she had no desire to strain her inflamed throat, Kate settled for wiggling her left pinky. The movement was caught instantly and the voice stopped. "Kate?"

"Mmm."

"Hello, beautiful." This time Kate thought ahead and worked until her eyes opened, a little proud to have succeeded faster. Apparently she was not the only one to be proud because Castle was watching her with a warm smile when their eyes locked. Kate's closed briefly when she felt the writer's hand brushing her cheek, her body enjoying the man's touch more than she was willing to admit. "Hi." She croaked, wincing as she licked her parched lips.

She must have been trying to swallow too often for the man's liking because next thing she knew his hand was back but this time his fingers were cold and…wet? Kate opened her mouth obediently and sighed contentedly as a small piece of ice grazed her lips before finding residence on her tongue, the water forming as the ice melted instantly soothing her throat.

"Better?" Castle asked he had fed her a few more chips, taking one last piece and delicately ran it over her lips to help rehydrate them. Taking the woman's weak nod for a yes, Castle put the glass containing the ice chips back on the small night stand and sat back, watching her carefully.

Kate rolled the words a few times in her mouth before she felt strong enough to voice them, hoping her voice wouldn't be too broken still. "How bad?"

It wasn't as good as she'd hoped, but she had managed to voice two words out loud without choking on them, so it could still be qualified as progress in her book. In Castle's too, by the way his eyes sparkled. "You don't want to wait for the doctor?"

Kate shook her head, happy with not being probed and poked a little while longer. "Please."

"Okay, okay." Castle frowned as he looked at her, considering how to approach her condition. "They still don't know if you lost control of your bike, or if the car is at cause," he began.

"You landed mostly on your right side, which they told us is a good thing since the left one is still somewhat weak from surgery last time. You have three broken ribs and a broken wrist on your right side; you've dislocated your left hip, and your ankle is sprained as well. You had internal bleeding so they had…you had to go under surgery again."

"They've stopped the bleeding without having to take out any organs, which is good, and for the rest, it is the usual: bruises, bumps and chafes. Your leather jacket and your jeans protected you from most of the impact, so you didn't lose too much skin, but you still got road burn and scrapes, although they'll heal and you shouldn't scar from them. You also have a concussion…they said you were lucky not to have a fractured skull or worse, even with your helmet."

"I know it's a lot to take in, I'm sorry." Castle whispered when the blank face Kate had managed while he talked slowly crumbled, her eyes becoming shiny with unshed tears. "Do you need anything? Are you sure you don't want me to call a doctor?"

"Why are you…here…Castle?"

Castle blanched, not expecting that answer. "What do you mean?"

'Of course now he wants me to talk.' Kate thought as she winced. "I thought you…didn't want me…anymore."

Castle's face was unreadable. Or maybe it was and Kate was the one unable to read it. She must have been making a face because Castle had edged closer again and his hands hovered over her before finally settling on her arm. "What is it, Kate?"

Kate didn't want to talk anymore. Her last words had strained her vocal chords and now that the discussion she had been trying to have for weeks with the writer was on the verge of happening, she wanted out. She wasn't strong enough to have that kind of argument, not when she was barely awake in a hospital bed with her body broken and useless for escaping him.

Castle sighed when he was met with silence. They couldn't have this discussion here and now, not when the detective was literally trapped in her own body. Noticing that Kate was refusing to meet his eyes, the mystery writer had an idea. Her father aside, Castle knew he was the one who knew Katherine Beckett the best. And he knew that she knew it.

Gently in case she'd refuse to cooperate, Castle cupped her chin and put just enough pressure on it to show her what he wanted. Thankfully he met no resistance and soon her eyes were on his again.

Neither of them spoke, Kate's openly challenging him to figure her out. Air hitched in Kate's lungs when Castle leaned forward so that their faces were mere inches apart but she held his gaze as best she could.

Kate's interest peeked when something changed in the writer's eyes but didn't have time to think that his lips were on her forehead, and then on her cheek, his hand having never moved from her face. "Kate?"

She answered him with a tired blink, making him smile. "You're right, now is not a good time to talk about it. In a few days, when you're better and you can talk, we'll take the time, but not now. Not like this."

Castle hesitated a moment, unsure if he should share Alexis's revelation, until the dim fear that has constantly been present in the detective's eyes in the last weeks came back with a force in her eyes. He couldn't deal with that fear anymore, couldn't stand to see her that anxious all the time. "Kate?"

"I said we didn't talk about it and we won't, but I just have one thing to say, okay?" Fear flashed stronger in her eyes, but something else was there…hope? "I just…I'm sorry. I should've stayed around when you wanted to talk, I shouldn't have bailed like I did."

"Five times."

"Too often." He conceded with a frown. "But I'm here now, and I'm not leaving anymore. Kate?"

Fear receded in the cop's eyes, curiosity quickly replacing it. "You're not dying or anything anymore, right?"

Kate slowly shook her head, a small grin gracing her lips. The glint in her eyes might have been due to the drugs they kept her on, but Castle knew that little sparkle. It appeared in the detective's eyes whenever she was happy, and it had occurred on such seldom occasions that he knew each and every one of them.

"Good." Castle leaned forward again and softly pressed his lips against hers. "I love you, Kate."

* * *

Review?


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for all of those who reviewed! I hope you're all excited for Headhunters tonight! I know I will, I was there when they filmed it! =D

* * *

"Apple sauce or Jell-O?"

"Baby food or squirmy food again?"

"Kate…" Lanie scowled her best friend as she held the two small containers. Kate glared back but nodded at the ME's left hand. "Apple sauce."

Lanie rolled her eyes and gave the detective a spoon before opening the right cup, placing it in front of her friend on the high rollaway table. "Jell-O is not squirmy, by the way. It's…wiggly."

"I don't care what it is, you try and eat that with your wrong hand." Kate mumbled as she took a small spoon of apple sauce and brought it to her mouth, her movements slow and stiff. "Mmm, raspberries, thanks Lanie."

"I also have blueberry and peach, in case you're still hungry after that." Lanie smiled and sat back in the chair next to her friend before putting her feet up on the foot of the bed. "So, where's writer-boy today? I haven't seen him hovering yet, did your doctor kick him out?"

Kate chuckled and dropped the spoon back on the table with a sigh. "No, I sent him home. He kept getting calls from Paula so I forbid him to come back until he had at least five chapters written."

"So he'll be back by nine, then?" Lanie smirked as she grabbed her bag and, after looking around, pulled a banana out of it. "Hey, look at what I found in there! You can half of it for now if you want."

The predator glare Kate shot at the shorter woman made her laugh, but she quickly stood to give the fruit to the starving woman. "Sweetie, are you sure they're feeding you enough? I've never seen you eating so much."

Lanie almost recoiled when Kate shifted her gaze towards her. "Yeah. I've been eating baby food, so it doesn't count. Please give the banana to me?"

"Apple sauce and yogurts aren't baby food. The doctor said you'd get the all clear for regular food tonight or tomorrow, you just have to be patient." Lanie chided her, smirking at the pout being displayed on the woman's face. "Oh right, I forgot, you weren't there the day they gave out patience, my bad."

"Lanie Elena Parish, I am going to hurt you if you don't give me that fruit right now."

"How do you plan to do that exactly?" Lanie challenged Kate but she was already moving closer and about to peel the fruit when her friend's voice stopped her. "No, let me do it."

"But-"

"Lanie…"

Lanie sighed and handed out the fruit, which Kate grabbed gratefully. Observing it a short moment, she put the banana on the table and, placing her cast over it to keep it still, expertly twisted the fruit at the top, opening it neatly.

Lanie watched as her friend worked on peeling the fruit, grinning inwardly. The detective's condition had improved quickly in the last five days, to everyone's greatest pleasure.

She still would have a way to go before she'd be back on her feet and back to work, but the medical examiner had a feeling that her recovery would be easier this time, smoother. She knew her friend's stubborn streak would surface every once in a while, and that fights would ensue but, all in all, it wouldn't be the same because of the presence of a certain writer. "You're staring."

"What?"

"You're staring again. It's creepy." Kate repeated as she took a bite of the banana and moaned. She blushed and suddenly found the wall very interesting, refusing to glance at her friend and the smirk she knew was stretching her face. "Don't you have to work today?"

"Really? You're gonna bite the hand that feeds you? How's the pain today?" Lanie shot back.

Kate almost said it was fine but the seriousness she found in Lanie's eyes had her hesitating. The last thing she wanted was her best friend to lecture her or, worse, tattle tale to Castle. Looking down at the fruit and noticing almost half of it was gone already, she sighed and regretfully put it back on the table. "I'm sick of not being able to move, Lanie. I think that's what hurt the most."

"Are you in actual pain, or is it more of a tired kind of pain?" Lanie sighed when Kate stared at her, utterly confused. "Do you refuse to move your body because it hurts, or do you hurt because your body is tired of not moving, like when you spend too much time sitting at your desk?"

"Um…both?" the detective scrunched up her nose in annoyance and wiggled her toes, wincing when her sprained ankle protested. Her whole body felt as if she had been trampled by a horde of elephants and then used as a human canon ball. "I can't even move my legs by myself." She muttered, angry at herself for the predicament she was in.

"I know, baby." Lanie left her chair and sat next to Kate's good hip, taking her hand and squeezing it tightly as frustration began to tighten the cop's battered body. "Do you want to change your bandages now? They're not due for a few hours, but that way the nurse won't have to bother you with it later. I might even help you with a few exercises if we have time."

"Yeah, okay."

Lanie smiled and stood, immediately going for the cabinet in the corner of the private room. One of the perks of belonging in Richard Castle's personal entourage: the room, without being too large, was spacious enough to welcome everybody at once, and had a small couch on one side in case someone wanted to take a nap.

Having a doctor as a best friend also had its perks. Lanie had spent time everyday with the nurses and Kate's doctor to learn everything about her friend's condition and medical treatment so they could minimize the prying from the medical staff. Lanie chuckled as she finished washing her hands, flashbacks of an over enthusiast nurse coming back to her.

"What are you laughing at?"

'Oh, she's cranky.' Lanie turned around and, sure enough, a scowl had taken up residence on the detective's face. "I was thinking about that crazy nurse."

The scowl grew bigger and Kate scoffed, shaking her head as she remembered. "I can't believe that freak wrote her phone number on my cast." She frowned as she shot her cast an odd look. Alexis had spent several hours that day drawing and writing over the disturbing digits until they weren't recognizable anymore. In top of everyone's signature, the cop's cast, that ran from her fingers joints to her elbow, was now covered in colorful flowers and butterflies. It was the girliest cast ever, and Kate was in love with it.

"I can't believe the guys didn't lose their jaws when they saw it," Lanie laughed, ignoring the indignant pout she received from the bed's occupant. "At least now Castle knows he's not the only one with the crazy fans."

"Yeah, I guess."

Lanie brought the box from the cabinet to the chair and sighed as she looked through it. "You should've told me sooner."

"What?"

"Kate, that's why I come in the mornings, to help you out with everything. If you keep waiting until you hurt too much to ignore the pain anymore, I'm going to ask your doctor to put you back on morphine."

Kate blanched and suddenly looked smaller and frail in her loose fitting sweat pants and the purple hoodie that was partially covering her hospital gown. She was always so cold that Castle had bought her a bunch of sweats, sweaters and fuzzy socks several sizes too big so she'd stay warm without the fabric bothering her over sensitive body. "No, what they're giving me is enough, I'll be more careful, I swear. No more morphine or demerol, please."

Lanie sighed, feeling bad for scaring the woman. She knew how she had hated having to take those drugs last year, but she had to make sure Kate's stubbornness wouldn't interfere with her recovery again. "I'm not, sweetie, I just want you to get better as quickly as possible. That's why you have to tell someone when you're in more pain than usual or if you feel like something's wrong."

"It always feels wrong, Lanie, and it will be as long as I'll be stuck here." Kate groused with a frown. She would have crossed her arms over her chest if it wouldn't have been so painful or tiring to do.

"We'll talk with your doctor next time he comes, but you're not leaving this bed until he's made sure you're well enough to come home." Castle stated as he made his way inside, a bouquet of colorful flowers in his hand.

Kate's features brightened instantly at the sight of the writer, her smile lighting up the room. It only lasted a brief moment however before she glared at him, her finger pointed at his chest in accusation. "You're supposed to be writing."

"I wrote two chapters this morning, I'm ahead of the deadline." Castle retorted back as he sat on Kate's bed, next to her hip. "Hey, gorgeous."

The warm lips Castle expected to kiss were suddenly replaced by a hand. Opening his eyes, he found himself staring in a set of tired but still beautiful sienna eyes. Annoyed eyes. "What?"

"Our deal was five chapters, Castle, not two." Kate reminded him but, as stern as she was trying to be, she wasn't fooling anyone. She was relieved to have him back by her side, and it showed.

Castle smiled in a way that said 'I know something you don't', and Kate braced herself, rolling her eyes even before he had time to share the news. "What?"

"I wrote nine chapters in the last couple of days, so technically? I'm six chapters ahead."

"You're a dork, you could've told me that before." Kate relaxed in the bed, happy she wouldn't have to send the man away again. "When did you write all that?"

"He wrote while you slept at night, and then went home and crash while one of us was keeping you company here." Lanie piped in from the other side of the bed, a smirk on her face. "You should kiss her now, before she thinks too much and finds another reason to hand block you."

"Lanie!"

"What?" The ME replied with wide, 'I'm so innocent' eyes. "Come on, can't you do a favor for your personal doctor? I've been rooting for you for the last four years, writer boy!" Lanie turned and sent a pointed glare at the man. "Four years trying to knock some sense into that thick head! That deserves a reward!"

Kate's eyes narrowed and pursed her lips, insulted. She was about to throw a mouthful to the two but Castle was quicker, his survival instincts kicking in when he saw _the _glare.

Closing the few inches separating him from her, Castle leaned in and gently kissed her, smiling at the warmth of her lips.

But as they brushed their lips together, Castle thought he was imagining things when he tasted apples, banana and… "Detective Beckett, are your lips tasting like cotton candy?"

Needing confirmation and not giving her the time to answer, the writer softly ran his tongue on her bottom lip before deepening the kiss, chuckling as he felt the detective moan's vibrating in his mouth.

"Oh my God, okay you need to stop that right now!" Lanie barked from the side, her face flustered and her eyes bright. "I need to change her bandages, writer-_man_, so you need to go."

Mouths separated with a surprisingly loud grunt from the woman on the bed, and the glare Castle had successfully avoided was suddenly directed on the ME. "I changed my mind, we'll do it later."

"No, the sooner we do it the better."

Kate licked her lips and shot Castle a longing look; at least the man was as annoyed at the doctor as she was. "Fine, but you better do it quick, Parish."

Lanie quirked an eyebrow but had the decency of not answering, smirking as she moved closer, Castle stepping back begrudgingly.

But as he looked over his shoulder when he reached the door, his eyes locked with Kate's and suddenly he couldn't move. "Castle?"

"No."

"No?" Lanie challenged him with a pointed look, daring him to move closer. "Castle, you know the drill. You can come back when-"

"No."

"No?" Echoed around the room again, this time from the ME and the writer together.

Kate was biting her lip nervously and kept glancing between her friend and her partner, surprised herself for having spoke out loud. "I mean, if- I, um."

She looked over and grinned gratefully when she felt Castle's hand on her leg, the man having moved closer when she was struggling with her words. "He can stay if he wants to."

Two sets of eyes stared at the cop in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah, I mean. I'm not saying I'm giving you a free pass at looking because I might have to shoot you," Kate mumbled as she locked eyes with Castle, an uncertain smile on her lips, "but he's going to see it sooner or later, so."

"Like a band-aid?" Castle asked with a warm grin and gentle eyes.

Kate nodded shyly, but her eyes determined. "Like a band-aid."

Lanie just stared at them as if they were both insane but quickly shook her head, shrugging off their odd conversation as she pulled on gloves.

"Oh, and Rick?" Kate softly called out after the bed and the rail had been lowered, grinning when his face was suddenly inches from hers, his head sharing the same pillow. "Yes, Kate?"

The detective waved him closer until their lips were touching. "It's bubble gum."

* * *

Thoughts, impressions, suggestions? Review!


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry it took so long to post, babysitting kids, working and writing a screenplay tends to sometimes keeps me busier than I'd like. That said, thanks a whole lot to those who reviewed, your comments and reactions are always loved! And those who only read, thanks too, lol. I know this said would be 2-3 chapters, but I should've known better. Someone suggested this could easily go up to 10 chapters, so I'll see what I can do. Thanks, enjoy!

* * *

Castle started to breathe again when he heard Kate sigh. Her fingers twitched in his hand and he briefly glanced down, noting with a frown how her body was still taut even twenty minutes after Lanie had left, the bandages changed and the flexibility exercises for Kate's legs done.

Even through the layers of the blankets, Castle could see how the detective was keeping her body still, completely unwilling to move it until the pain had faded to a more tolerable level. "Kate."

"No."

Castle grunted and brought his eyes back to her face, his free hand lraising to brush away a stray tear that had escaped despite the woman's attempt at keeping them at bay. "This is ridiculous, you need some-"

Kate's fingers brushed against his palm, immediately stopping him. "No. It's better, Castle, I promise. I just, I just need a minute."

"Or twenty." He muttered.

"Shut up." Kate snapped in frustration but instantly regretted it, and cringed as she moved to shift closer to Castle. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it."

Castle shot her a stern look because, whether she meant the words or not, they stung, but he stayed put. His days of running away were over. There was only one thing that could push the man to leave but, after weeks of uncertainty and hurting, the writer knew those words wouldn't come out of her mouth. Not anymore anyway. "So, you _do_ want me to talk?"

The smirk fell off Castle's face when Kate glared and dug her fingernails into his palm. "No. Yes. I mean, please be quiet?"

"That I can do." He replied softly as he leant forward to press a gentle kiss on her cheek. Kate eyed him, suspicious, but she was too tired to care. "Rick?"

Castle's heart flipped happily in his chest at the use of his first name. He was fine with being 'Castle' with her because it was their thing, but 'Rick'…it had a whole other meaning for her, and he couldn't wait to discover more of it. He refrained to call her sweetie at the last second in case she was in a mood; last time that happened, their day had been long. _Really_ long. "Yes, Kate?"

Kate rolled her eyes and bit back a smirk. 'Oh, now I could've called her that?' Castle thought with an internal groan, hating that he had read her wrong. "Could you raise the bed up a little, my back starting to hurt."

"Oh, yes, of course." Castle quickly grabbed the remote and pressed the 'up' button, and listened quietly as the bed slowly brought the detective back to a sitting position. "Like that?"

"Yeah, thanks." Kate mumbled before her face scrunched up, her casted hand going to her hip. "Ow."

Castle was on his feet instantly, his features darkened in concern. "What, what is it, do you want me to go get a doctor?"

Kate stared at him until he calmed down enough to realize she was even staring at him. "I'm fine, it's just, I think a piece of tape is stuck to my pants and it pulls on my skin."

"Oh. Here, let me." Castle gently but firmly pushed her casted arm away. Glancing at her briefly to gauge her reaction, Castle locked eyes with a pair of nervous, if slightly frustrated sienna eyes. She clearly wasn't completely comfortable with him taking the lead but she allowed him anyway, without even arguing. Huh.

Castle took a breath and tried to exhale normally as he tried not to show how much all of this was affecting him. Pulling back the covers a bit, the writer briefly eyed the dark blue pants she was wearing and gently moved her hospital gown so her hip was visible. Castle frowned at how pronounced it was; she had lost weight in the couple of weeks he hadn't been around, and he wondered if it was only due to the stress of the trial preparation, or if he was at fault as well.

Kate didn't move as she felt Castle's hand brushing her hipbone, instead her gaze found a faint stain on the ceiling and she focused her eyes on it. The man's fingers on her were already driving her crazy and he had barely touched her. The detective almost snorted as she wondered how she was going to survive living in Castle's loft during her recovery without ending up naked in his bed on the first night. Ugh.

"You okay?"

Kate's head snapped back to Castle, whom was watching her with concern. "What?"

"You sighed, and you're frowning. Did I hurt you?" It was Castle's turn to frown as Kate shook her head and blushed, and made a conscious effort to avoid his eyes. Huh.

Eyes slightly narrowed, Castle stared at the woman in bed, thinking at first she was in more pain she was letting on, but something about her was different. Why would she be blushing if she was in pain? Shifting on the bed, Castle realized where his hand still was. Oh. Could it be...?

The pants had been freed and the tape, taped back on the detective's skin, but Castle decided to double check, only to make sure there was still enough adhesive to the tape so it would hold for the day. That was what he convinced himself of anyway.

Keeping an eye on Kate's face, Castle slowly moved his hand lower again, his fingers gently tracing her hipbone down to her top of her thigh. The tape was glued to the skin, but still the writer's fingers continued to trace the small patch of skin available to him. Oh. The blush was back full force on the cop's cheeks, neck and chest, and she had turned her head sideways, her eyes closed shut.

Castle had to bite back the laugh and smile that threatened to come out. If they did, he was pretty sure Kate would find a way to kick his ass, trapped in a hospital bed or not. Letting his fingers brush her soft skin one last time, Castle pulled back the pants up and gown back in place, and waited.

Sure enough, the cop's breathing, after a slight hitch, went back to normal, eliciting a giddy grin from the writer. "Richard Castle, if you did that on purpose, I am going to shoot you."

Kate's eyes were finally on him, dark and bright, making Castle gulp. The detective's face was still tainted with desire, her cheeks still slightly reddened and the writer had to smile at how adorable she looked. "What did I do?"

He thought he could pull the 'I'm so innocent and I wasn't trying to get back at you' act, but as Kate's glare fell upon him, Castle went into action and brought his lips to Kate's to distract her. His tongue immediately pushed through the woman's lips to seek her own, Castle smiling against the detective's mouth when he felt her responding eagerly, her teeth nibbling his lower lip in teasing.

"Cas- Rick-" She eventually panted, her hand squeezing his wrist to snap him out of the moment.

Castle pulled back regretfully, but not before placing another promising kiss on her lips. "Yes, honey?"

"Honey, really? We, we need to talk, Rick."

Castle sat on the bed with a huff of breath, the moment broken. Kate was no better, as she slowly tried to calm her overexcited heartbeat. "You okay, there?"

"I'm fine." The detective replied curtly as she tried to maneuver herself into a more comfortable position, without great success. "Ugh, I hate this."

"Is it worse?" Castle suddenly asked before he could stop himself. He could tell by the look on Kate's face that she was as surprised as him for his outburst and she stared at him a moment, confused, before recognition settled in.

"It's not the same."

"But-"

"Why are you even asking me that, Castle. My body's messed up as it is, do you really need to mess up with my mind as well?" Kate muttered angrily, tears of frustration pooling in her eyes. "I'm sorry, that was out of line."

Castle nodded but the words had stung. Bad. They were inching slowly, but surely towards the talk they should've had months ago, but he couldn't have it this way.

Not when the woman he love- not loved at the past tense- but still love more than anything, was writhing in pain in bed because she was too stubborn to refuse help or a better medication. "Kate, calm down or you're going to pull something."

The detective was biting her lower lip so harshly he thought she was going to make it bleed but, after what felt like hours, he saw her slightly relax in bed. Castle watched as she stared at the ceiling and blinking more rapidly than normal. "It's both."

"What?"

Kate licked her lips and sighed, forcing her lungs to take smaller gulps of air so it wouldn't strain her ribs too much. "This. It's both better and worse."

At Castle's confused gaze, Kate closed her eyes. "It's better this time because I don't feel like I'm going to die every time I breathe, or cough, or sneeze." She spoke quietly, as if she was ashamed to voice her previous painful memories out loud. "It's better because I can lift my head without feeling like there is a burning rod pinning me to the bed, and it's better because I can move my arm without fearing that it's going to fall off, or that I might rip my surgical scar open all over again."

"And yet," she continued as she pointedly ignored the man because the horror now present in his eyes would make her lose it and she didn't have the strength to cry anymore, "it's worse because I feel like I can't move at all."

"When I was shot, I could barely move for weeks, but at least I could use my arm, or bend my legs, move my feet to distract myself from the pain. But right now? I can't stretch my left leg because it might get dislocated again, I can't move my right foot because it's still the size of a football, and the road rashes are driving me crazy because they pull, they sting and they burn but there's nothing I can do about it."

The silence stretched a while longer after Kate was done talking and, finally when she couldn't take it any longer, glanced at Castle. "Castle, no..." The man was looking at her, tears running down his cheeks and they held so much pain that for a moment, Kate wondered who from the both of them had sustained the worse injuries. "Come here."

Castle seemed to snap out of it at her words and he stared, confused. "What?"

"Come here. Help me move and get your butt here."

"Kate, no it's not a good-"

"You want to help me? Move me so you can scoot next to me, Rick."

The softness of her voice and the pleading in her eyes broke Castle's resolve so he slid off the bed and stepped closer, unsure of how to proceed. "Um."

"You have to lay on my right side, so I need to move on that side." Kate gently explained to him as she tried to move. "Wait! You're going to hurt yourself."

Castle pondered briefly the best way to move the cop. Having an idea, he relocated to the other side of the bed and pushed back the covers. Mindful of the wires and tubes still attached to her, Castle gently sneaked an arm under Kate's thighs, as high as he could so he wouldn't put any unnecessary strain on her hip, while the other wrapped itself under her arms. Then, dutifully not thinking of where one of his hands was, Castle scooted her over until there was a small but big enough space for him to crawl in. "You okay?"

"Yeah."

After one last glance to Kate, Castle removed his shoes and climbed in, a little awkwardly as he tried not to touch the detective. He realized how stupid he must have looked when Kate chuckled next to him. "You think it's funny, don't you?"

"Yes. Now stop moving so I can make myself comfortable, writer boy."

Castle rolled his eyes but remained still as Kate rested her head close to his, her face scrunching up in annoyance when she tried to move her leg. "Castle?"

The writer seemed to have understood what she wanted because next thing she knew he was leaning forward to grab the blankets. Covering her only partly with it, Castle move into a more stable position on his back and carefully put his hand under Kate's knee and brought her leg over his, releasing the pressure on her feet. "Better?"

"Much. Thank you."

Castle grinned and placed a soft kiss on her temple as his hand trailed down her cast to play with her fingers, enjoying their softness and the slight twitch they did whenever he spent more than a few seconds stroking them. "Kate?"

Her breathing had slowed down and her body finally felt boneless next to him, but he knew she wasn't sleeping. "How did it get so messed up, Rick?"

"I think that...you know, maybe we could ask Lanie that. I'm sure she'd have the time of her life having us to her mercy for that one."

Kate chuckled as she relaxed even more, letting herself enjoy the feeling of Castle's leg under hers, and his fingers now holding hers. "I know you know I remember."

"Yeah, I figured that much by now." Castle sighed as a scowl took place on his features. "Why didn't you say anything, Kate? For months I kept imagining every possible scenarios in which you would suddenly remember, or on the opposite you never recovered those memories and-"

"You wanted to tell me all over again, and hoping to make me remember. I bet that in all of those scenarios, this one didn't make the list, huh?"

Castle took in their surroundings and grunted. "No. This is something I don't ever want to think about."

Kate burrowed her face deeper in Castle's chest and sighed. "Why didn't you confront me, Castle? For weeks I've been trying to figure out why you were pulling away. I thought you didn't want to wait anymore."

"I didn't think it was worth confronting you about." He told her honestly, felt her breath catch in her chest and her body tensing anew at his words. "You've had seven months to clean to me, Kate. And it's not like I was subtle about wondering if you had heard me or not. The only reason I could think that could justify your behavior is if you hadn't been feeling the same way."

Kate remembered the times where the writer had pointed at the shooting or her recovery, pressing her for answers, recalled how many times she had nearly blurted out the three words she had hung on to desperately all these months "It's all so blurry now, but I think that a part of me didn't believe it, at first. I was dying and confessing your love in this kind of situation would make such a great story."

"I wasn't ready, Rick. I knew I had feelings for you, but after what happened, it was all too much. You were looking at me as if I was still dying, Josh was constantly staring or glaring because he wanted to be the one to have saved me, and-"

"Wait- what did you say?" Castle frowned, his mind suddenly reeling with the detective's words. "About Josh?"

"Which part?"

Castle moved so he was face to face with Kate, wanting to see her eyes as she spoke. "Him wanted to save you part. He did your surgery, how more life saving could he have been doing?"

Kate pursed her lips together as she stared back at Castle. "He may have done part of my surgery, Castle, but you and Lanie are the ones who truly saved me that day. Not him."

"Kate-"

"You tried to take a bullet for me, Castle. In front of your daughter and your mother. My dad told me about the fight when I woke up, and how Alexis tried to attack Josh. That's when I realized that I had messed you up too badly already, I couldn't do that to your family as well."

"So you didn't tell me about me loving you to protect me."

His voice was harsh and hurt, and it cut Kate's heart. "No. Yes, I. I don't know. I always sucked at talking about my feelings, do you really think me getting shot would change that?"

Castle grunted and closed his eyes in frustration. "No. Of course not. It could have, but you wouldn't be you if it did."

A soft touch on his cheek forced his eyes open and Castle stared, surprised, when he saw a slim hand hovering his face and a set of glassy eyes staring at him in confusion. "What?"

"I don't understand what you're saying."

Castle took her hand and slowly lowered it back to her side. "It means that maybe part of me was foolish enough that it would have made you realize that you had feelings for me as well, and-"

"-that I would've acted on it. Well, technically..."

"Shhh, be quiet now." Castle mumbles, not wanting to have her admit she did act on her feelings, by doing the complete opposite of what he had been hoping for. "Ow!"

"Are you telling me to shut up?" Kate asked with a glare, her fingers stroking his leg right where she had just pinched him.

"No. Never, Katherine." Castle put his hand down to avoid another pinching, applying the slightest pressure on her cast and keeping her from moving her hand close to him again.

The glare he got would have had him run for covers if he wasn't being used as a pillow at the moment. "Really Castle? Using my broken wrist against myself. That's low."

"Promise you won't pinch me again."

Kate rolled her eyes but nodded, somewhat half-heartedly. She could see Castle was still trying to wrap his mind around her choppy explanation. She couldn't blame him though; she could barely keep track of what she'd said, and how she'd said it. "Hey, Rick?"

Castle got the cutest grin on his face as he turned again to see her, the one he got whenever she used his first name. "Yes?"

"I'm going to try again, okay? So try and forgive my lack of poetic prose." Castle nodded and watched her, curious.

"I didn't think I was good enough for you. Everything or everyone I had come close to ever since my mom died either left or died, and I didn't want the same thing happening to you, so I lied and turned you down. I accepted my dad's offer to go to his cabin and spent the summer hating myself for not being able to let anyone in, especially you. I, I couldn't stand the thought of losing you so I thought that pushing you away for good would fix that. Better away and safe, than close and on the crosshairs all the time because of me."

Castle hummed and rested his chin over the top of her head. "What changed?"

"I couldn't stay away from you. All summer you were all I could think about. I wanted you with me so you could tell me it would get better, so you could tell me stories when I wanted to give up. So when I saw you again at the book signing, I know I wouldn't be able to stay away again. I needed you."

"You've always had me, I hope you know that." He whispered in his ear, thoroughly loving seeing her shuddering just with the sound of his voice.

"I didn't always know. You were there at the beginning, keeping me steady when I couldn't see a gun without freezing, just like you had my back when I lost control during the sniper case. But when I finally started to really open up to you, you froze me out, Castle, and said you wanted 'fun and uncomplicated'." She whispered back, hurt lacing her voice.

"You thought I was done waiting for you." He stated tersely, getting a better understanding from her side of the story, finally. "As for 'fun and uncomplicated', you should know by now that the more complicated the better. I can't believe you think I'd go for 'uncomplicated'."

"Yeah, well I can't believe you thought I didn't love you."

Castle's heart thumped loudly in his chest, skipped a few beats. "What?"

"I love you too, Rick."


	5. Chapter 5

So sorry it took forever before I got around posting a new chapter...apparently, on top of being a screenwriter, am I also a personal therapist and babysitter. And I got caught up with Castle and Always. *gasp* that finale...

* * *

"Kate?"

The detective's head snapped up upon hearing her name, and froze. Concentrating on trying to keep her hospital gown from falling down, she didn't hear the youngest Castle come in. "Alexis, um. Hi."

The blush slowly reddening Kate's cheeks easily matched Alexis'. The teenager watched as the older woman's hand crept higher, now desperately trying to keep the offending garment from revealing anything that would send the both of them into a blushing and blabbering mess. "Wait, let me do it."

Before Kate had time to react, Alexis was by her side and refastening the stupidly thin gown on the nape of her neck. "There. Do you want the one um, down your back done as well?"

'Kill me now.' Kate thought as she blushed darker and kept her body completely still. "Um, no it's, it's fine like that, thanks Alexis."

Making sure that the knot wouldn't loosen up again, Alexis gently tugged on the gown before backing away, not letting her eyes lingering on the bandages that were covering patches of roughened skin. "How'd you manage to do that, anyway?" The redhead asked curiously as she carefully sat at the edge of the bed, mindful of the cop's legs.

Kate rolled her eyes, embarrassed. "I was hot and taking off the sweatshirt by myself revealed to be harder than I thought." She explained as she sent the offending shirt a glare where she had thrown it on the floor.

"You should've waited for my dad, or Lanie, you know. Or...or even for me. I'm sure my dad told you I'd stop by today."

Not having a good answer to give, Kate only shrugged lightly. "Where is your father, by the way?"

Alexis grinned as she let her bag drop on the floor. "He's talking with your doctor. I think they're discussing about releasing you tomorrow or the day after, I didn't pay attention, sorry."

The bright smile the teenager got in response told her the detective didn't mind. At all. "Really? Thank God. I'm going crazy trapped in here."

"Let's hope for tomorrow, then." Alexis replied with a soft smile, and she found herself surprisingly glad to know her dad's...girlfriend would most probably be coming home during her recovery. "Det- Kate? How did you manage, you know last time?" I mean, you've been here barely a week and my father's been at your side pretty much all the time, and if you're still going crazy...

Alexis cringed when the smile gracing the other woman's face left, replaced by a frown and a sudden distance in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything, I'll just-"

"Alexis. It's fine, it's just...you took me by surprise." Kate admitted softly. She and Castle had talked about it some, but to have his daughter stared at her the same way he did and having to retell the story again wasn't something she was exactly planning on. "My father was there, and Lanie too. They did what they could to keep me from going too crazy, but..."

"They were keeping me on so many painkillers and medication the first two weeks, Alexis, I don't even remember what it felt like when I took my first steps." At the confused, yet saddened look the teenager, Kate couldn't stop herself from letting out a self-deprecating scoff. "You never know how hard it is to place one foot in front of the other until you actually have the memory to experience it."

"You had to learn how to walk again?" Alexis tried to keep the horror out of her voice but she wasn't sure she'd succeeded. Judging by the look on the cop's face, she had visibly failed. Miserably.

Kate sighed as she settled more comfortably on the bed. "Kind of. It was mostly learning how to keep my balance, and how to not use my abdominal muscles too much at the beginning. It was kind of like a game, like 'stay straight and you can walk, but lean too far on either side and I'd risk kissing the floor'."

"Alexis, I'm not telling you this to make you feel bad." Kate reassured her when she saw tears threatening to fall from the girl's blue eyes. "I'm not even sure why I'm telling you this. I guess...I guess I'm just trying to make you see why it wouldn't have been a good idea for your dad to be around me at that time. I was hell to deal with, Alexis. I didn't want to hurt him by snapping at him and telling him off all the time."

"He wouldn't have cared. He was sick with worry all summer, Kate. He wanted to help you and you didn't let him."

"I know. And I regret that now, even though I wasn't ready then."

Alexis studied Kate cautiously for several moments, only releasing the woman from her misery once the cop began squirming under the teenager's gaze. "Will you let him help this time? Will you let _us _help?"

Kate forced herself to not shy away from the girl's inquisitive glare. "Yeah."

* * *

Lanie hadn't lied.

A recovering Kate Beckett, as it turned out, wasn't nearly as pleasant as Castle would have thought. Going from being over independent to completely dependent in a matter of days because of a motorcycle accident had left the detective with a short temper and a 'bite me' attitude that was starting to get to the writer's usually bubbly self.

It wasn't that she was that bad. Kate had been accepting Castle's help with relative ease, and even Alexis or Martha's as well on occasion, but the detective was starting to struggle with not being able to do much by herself.

"I'm sorry." Castle apologized softly when Kate winced after he had pressed a little too hard on her lower side, forgetting for a second his hands were on her worst side.

Kate hummed with a controlled sigh, her breathing slow and deep. She tried to focus on something else as the writer's gloved hands were busy rubbing a special ointment on her scorched skin so it would heal faster, and more thoroughly. As gentle as his hands were, the feeling of the latex on her skin would make the detective's nose scrunch up in dislike every few minutes, as the ministrations made her feel like she was some piece of meat being prepared for tonight's dinner.

Castle had noticed his girlfriend's reaction; she had the same one thrice a day, whenever they took a break so he could apply the ointment on her irritated skin. While he normally waited for her to take a nap to do it, the cop had refused to go back to sleep so far today. "I'm almost done, sweetie." The nurses and Lanie had taken care of everything at first, but Castle had learn how to tend to his partner's needs so he could be the one doing it once they'd be back at home.

Kate nodded and sighed as she closed her eyes, forcing her muscles to relax as Castle began tending to her leg, trying to feel his hands as if he was giving her a massage rather than tending to her injuries. "So, what do you want to do after?"

The expected scoff echoed in Castle's ears. They've had the same discussion every day for the last four days and, if it would have been simpler to just decide what to do and put his foot down so that the woman in bed followed, he knew that Kate needed at least some kind of control over her predicament, as small as it was. "It's beautiful outside today, we could go out for a ride, or go up to the roof?"

"I don't want to go outside."

Of course. "Do you want to take a bath?"

Castle gulped and imperceptibly moved backward on the bed when Kate emitted a disgruntled snort and shot him a brief but frustrated glare. "You mean, do I want to have a five-minute sponge bath, sitting in the middle of your bathroom while I'm getting washed down like an old grandma? No thanks."

"Come on, now. You're much sexier than an old grandma." Castle replied with a quirked eyebrow, changing tactics to try and cheer up the woman. Having finished with her leg, the writer threw the surgical gloves in the trash and took a seat next to Kate. He softly cupped her cheek and ran his thumb over her cheekbone as they waited for the ointment to penetrate the skin before putting the bandages back on her battered body.

Kate huffed and stared at her casted arm with so much annoyance that it wouldn't have surprised Castle if the cast had broken under her gaze. "No, I'm not. I'm all bruised and scratched and swollen all over. I look like Frankenstein." She felt ridiculous lying in bed over an oversized beach towel and only clad in her underwear, even though this was so much better than when the same had to be done in the hospital.

"You mean like Frankenstein's monster?"

"Castle..." Kate warned him, her patience wearing thin. She moved her toes carefully, insanely enjoying that the movement wasn't quite as painful anymore. "You should go out, get some fresh air. I'm just going to keep lashing out at you if you stay here."

"I'm not leaving you alone, Kate, so forget it."

"Why? Are you afraid I'm going to knock myself out with my own cast out of boredom?"

Castle grunted as he inched closer to her, hoping she wouldn't notice in her rant. "No, I believe that was me last night."

Kate's demeanor softened instantly and she looked at him guiltily, her good hand coming to protect her cast. "I'm so sorry, Rick, it was an accident, I swear."

Castle unconsciously rubbed the side of his head, where Kate had accidentally smacked him with her cast the day before. He made a mental note that day to keep a hand on her cast when things got heated between them since it seemed that the detective tended to forget about wearing a cast. A heavy and really sturdy one. "It's fine. The bump's practically gone now."

His comforting words not having the desired effect, Castle changed tactics. Inching closer, he put some of his weight on his left arm while his other hand stayed on Kate's face, gently keeping her in place as he kissed her. He let her set the pace and he could tell how tired she was as she met his lips in a few slow, languid kisses. "You really should take a nap, you're exhausted."

She hummed her agreement, her eyes suddenly too heavy to remain open. "Will you stay with me?"

Castle smiled as he pressed his lips against hers a moment before moving to her jaw, cheek and ear. "I'll stay until you fall asleep and I'll go make dinner," he whispered in her ear, "but I'll be there for when you wake up. Deal?"

Kate opened her eyes briefly, her fingers squeezing the writer's knee. "Order in instead?"

"No, no more take out for a few days. But I'll make you your favorite if you're a good girl and sleep for a few hours."

Kate's glare was as effective as if it had been given by a newborn kitten, but Castle didn't say anything. He loved his life too much to have it ended by a crabby, sleepy detective. "Sleep, Kate."

She was asleep in seconds. Castle cleaned up the room a few minutes to make sure she was really sleeping before pulling on another pair of gloves and, carefully, redid her bandages. Covering her with a thin but warm sheet when he was done, Castle left the bedroom door ajar to go and start making dinner.

* * *

Bracing himself, Castle quickly hopped off the bed and went to retrieve the wheelchair in the corner of the room. "Forget it, Rick."

"Kate, you've had rehab this morning and you've already used the crutches twice today, so no argument. We're just going into the kitchen, okay?"

The detective had slept for over three hours and, true to his words, the writer had been lying in bed when she woke up, welcoming her back with soft kisses down her neck.

Castle ignored the glare he received in response. In other circumstances he would've backed out and let her have it her way, but they were in this together now so the writer refused to let himself intimidated by the cop. That's what he told himself anyway, for the third time that day. "Come on, we have a surprise for you."

"We?" Kate begrudgingly complied and pushed herself off the bed and into the wheelchair. Her hip was better but her ankle was still tender and swollen, and it would be at least another week before she would be allowed to start putting any weight on it.

Castle hovered in case she would need his help but the cop pushed him back with a pointed look. "Who're we, Castle?"

"You'll see." He answered cryptically, at the woman's frustration. "Come on, it'll be fun."

"No, it won't."

Castle pursed his lips and swiftly turned her chair around before crouching in front of her. "Why are always you so damn stubborn? Can't you just trust me?"

Kate bit her lip and glanced into the writer's eyes, but looked away quickly.

Castle sighed and took her hand before she could start picking at her cast. It was a habit the man had noticed early on; whenever Kate got nervous or anxious, she would absently start picking at her cast, like she would have done with the sleeve of her shirt if she had been wearing one. "Kate, look at me."

Relieved that she actually listened to him on the first try, Castle inched closer to meet the detective's wary eyes, and kissed her softly on the lips. "So far I've respected your wish to not want to go outside; I've given you space and time whenever you asked, or didn't ask very loudly for it; we've all respected your privacy because even though you keep saying that you're fine with living here for now, I know part of you want to bolt so you can lick your wounds by yourself until you feel ready to face the world again."

"All I'm asking is to come in the kitchen with me. I'll even make you coffee. Regular one, but only if you stop fighting me all the time."

Kate glanced at the man through her thick eyelashes, her features softening in apology. "Yeah, okay. I'm sorry, Rick, I don't mean to be such a pain in the ass all the time. I don't do too well with-"

"Admitting my ideas are completely and remarkably fun?" Castle suggested, leading the conversation towards a lighter subject.

Kate scoffed even as a small smile graced her lips. "Never."

"This is so much fun." Kate whispered one hour later, not realizing that Castle was close enough to hear it.

The woman was sitting at the kitchen counter on an overstuffed stool she suspected Castle had bought expressly for her, and was watching, amused as Alexis busied herself crushing another bucket of ice.

Castle had been right. The surprise had been a good one. Kate smiled as she looked down at the recipe book. She could hardly believe they had just spent the last hour making ice cream from scratch.

While dinner slowly cooked in the oven, they had made mango sherbet, rocky road and strawberry ice cream. They were currently on their way to make espresso ice cream, something that Alexis and Kate were highly excited bout. "Do you have enough half & half left?"

"Um, yeah. I'm almost done. Dad?" Alexis asked as she glanced above her shoulder at her father, checking if he was ready.

Castle grinned and nodded as he began to put all the needed ingredients in the bowl. "This smells so good." He stated, taking the bowl and pushing it next to Kate so she could smell it as well.

The soft smile on the woman's face warmed Castle's heart, and he knew at that moment that his surprise had been a good one. "You girls can have some of the other two, and we'll keep the espresso one for dessert."

"What? Dad!"

"Castle!"

"It needs time to rest anyway, come on, it'll be so much better for dessert. All that expectation, that waiting...everything tastes all the more exquisite when it makes itself desire."

Kate searched for her boyfriend's azure eyes, smiling gently as she gripped his shirt to pull his closer. "Better not make me wait four years, Rick."

Castle chuckled as he ran a hand down her arm until it rested on her casted hand, loving the feeling of her fingertips tickling his palm. "How about two hours?"

"One hour."

"Dinner won't be ready then."

"It can be an entrée?"

Alexis laughed, startling the couple. "Sorry. Ice cream before dinner? You're as bad as my father, Kate." The teenager smirked.

Kate smirked back, her hand releasing Castle's shirt keeping it flat against the writer's heart. "You want to wait two hours then?"

Alexis' eyes widened comically as she shook her head. "Nope. Most brilliant idea ever. Ice cream as an entrée. Oh, we could have it with an Americano, it'd be so good, right?"

Castle glanced between the two woman, not sure if he should be happy or terrified that they had seemingly sided against him.

For coffee.

He was doomed. Happily doomed.

* * *

_Ok, so...I feel like this could be it. Unless people have other expectations and want more chapters...otherwise I will concentrate my efforts into a one shot that isn't a true one shot since it's been sitting in my laptop for two weeks, and I will resume writing Arise, and Coffees & Bricks. Plus another one, a Grey/Castle crossover, that is halfway finished._

  
_Thoughts? Reviews, plz? Happy Memorial Day Weekend!  
_


	6. Chapter 6

Apparently, you people want me to continue this. I guess it'll go one until I run out of ideas, since this is already way AU from the ending of season 4. Thanks for reading/reviewing!

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Yeah."

Castle nodded quietly as he turned the ignition of the car off, never taking his eyes off of his partner.

Having called earlier, Castle had managed to get the authorization of parking closer than it was normally allowed, and it was with an uncomfortable feeling that he finally dragged his eyes away to look outside. "You ready?"

Kate sighed but nodded, offering the man a small smile. "Yes."

Castle promptly exited his dark sedan and went around it to open the door for his girlfriend, and gathered the crutches from the backseat. He had wanted to take the wheelchair with them but the glare the woman had sent him had him rethink that option.

Without a word he waited for Kate to exit the car, which she managed to do more gracefully than he could have ever done, and handed her the crutches after she had pushed herself upright against the vehicle.

It took several seconds and a heavily frustrated sigh from the cop as she adjusted to the feeling of the metal crutches, her grip slipping at first because of her cast. Castle remained quiet, knowing better than to interfere if he didn't want to get clobbered by either the cast or the crutch, and pointed to where they were expected when the detective finally had everything under control.

Kate shot the custom motorcycle garage a nervous glance as she slowly moved forward, Castle right by her side. They were halfway to the door when a tall and heavy built man, with short black hair and thick red glasses came out to greet them. "Mister Castle?"

"Yes, hi. Malcolm?" Castle inquired politely, his hand unconsciously coming to rest on Kate's lower back as soon as they stopped moving forward.

Malcolm smiled and nodded as he shook Castle's hand, gesturing for them to follow. "And you must be Mrs. Beckett?"

Kate's eyes narrowed slightly but acquiesced. Following Malcolm at a slower pace, the cop grew anxious at the idea of seeing her bike for the first time in three weeks. They all have been telling her that it couldn't be salvaged, but no one had let her see it so far. Even her helmet had been kept somewhere hidden from her.

Realizing that Malcolm was talking to them, Kate shook herself up and locked eyes with him, fighting the urge of scrutinize the room to find her bike. "Jack should be here soon, he's the one who checked out your bike when it was brought here."

Kate hummed quietly as she took in the garage. The room Malcolm had lead them to was big and much cleaner than neither of them could have had ever expected for a garage. Several bikes, mostly Harleys, were aligned on the far wall, all shiny and obviously brand new. One of them however, stood out from the others. Not a Harley but a racer bike, it's deep, metallic golden color stood out from every other bike. It was gorgeous. Kate had never been a fan of that specific brand of motorcycle, but that one had her heart stuttering a bit.

Malcolm followed her gaze and smiled knowingly. "Ahh, I see you're admiring this new beauty. It's a 2006 Benelli TnT Cafe racer bike. Gorgeous, right?"

"Yeah." She breathed out before settling her gaze back on the mechanic, a small smirk gracing her lips upon hearing the name of the bike. "Do you know if my bike can be fixed or not?" Kate asked somewhat shyly, sighing when she felt Castle's arm sneaking its way around her waist so she wouldn't have to put too much weight on her legs.

Malcolm didn't say anything as he looked her up and down, but his eyes said it all. Kate was about to argue when another man appeared in the doorway. "Hey guys, sorry I'm a little late."

Jack Hansen was short, lean and had long blond hair, tied up in a low pony tail. He might have been smaller than Castle or even Malcolm, but the man had a presence to be reckoned with that even Kate felt as he walked towards them. "You're detective Beckett?"

Castle didn't miss the way his partner stood straighter at the use of her official title. "Yes. You're the one who inspected my bike?"

Jack didn't respond right away, instead he did the same as Malcolm and checked out the cop, his eyes lingering on her cast. "I heard about the accident on the news. Honestly, detective, I don't know how you managed to get out with just a few broken bones, but your bike didn't have your luck.

Kate tightened her grip around her crutches' handles until she could feel the cast pressing painfully in her palm. "Can I see it?"

"Sure. It's right this way." Jack turned around and moved to the back of the room, away from the other motorcycles.

"Do you want to sit?" Castle whispered in her ear as soon as both men were out of earshot.

Kate shook her head, stubbornly refusing to look weak in front of strangers. "No, I'm fine."

"Kate-"

"Drop it, Rick!"

Castle huffed but stayed by her side, despite how much he wanted to precede her to where her Harley rested.

A few stomping steps later the detective's soft tail Harley came into view, and what she saw had Kate frowning. Her bike had a few bumps, deep scratches and the wheels seemed to be misaligned, but other than that, it didn't look too bad. "It doesn't look that bad."

Malcolm and Jack shared a look. "It doesn't, because most of the damage is inside."

"Both brake lines have been severed, the chain drive has been ripped off, the rear suspension was split in half; the switches were crushed from the impact, the fuel tank is cracked..."

Kate listened, horrified at what Jack was telling her. From the looks of it, practically every part of her bike had either been ripped out under the force of the impact, of had been broken beyond repair.

"Honestly, it would probably cost twice what your bike is worth now to fix it, and I can't even guarantee it'll run again. My opinion is that you should take a few months to take it easy, and if you still want to ride after that, just buy a new one."

* * *

Kate sighed and closed her eyes as she dropped _Storm Fall_ next to her. It was barely two in the afternoon and yet she was already exhausted. She had refused to talk to Castle on their way back to the loft, upset at having lost her bike for good.

For once in her life she would have accepted the man's help, even his money, to have her bike fixed, but Castle had refused, stating that it wouldn't be safe and that he didn't want her risking her life again on that bike if there was no guarantee that it could be restored and completely safe.

Angry and upset, Kate had shunned the man's attempts at make her understand until Castle had finally resorted to retreat to his study to get some writing done while the cop seethed in the living room.

Puffing out in frustration, Kate glared at her empty cup of coffee. She knew there was coffee left on the counter but the idea of getting up was far from tempting at the moment. It had taken her a while to find a comfortable position on the couch and she wasn't ready to give it up just yet.

The urge for coffee won over her need for comfort in less than three minutes. Kate eyed the crutches with an evil glare, as she briefly considered hopping to the counter instead. She _could_ put some weight on her foot, as long as it wasn't too much or for too long, but in the end she rolled her eyes and grabbed the instruments of torture and got ready to go.

She was halfway to the counter when her cast slipped from the handle. She tried to regain her balance but the sudden movement forward tore at her newest surgical scar, and she made the mistake of fully put her sore foot down.

Kate gasped and went down fast, falling on her knee and casted hand.

Black spots darkening her vision and tears threatening to fall as her body crumbled to the ground, Kate suddenly failed to get her breathing under control. Still, she struggled to get back on her knees, refusing to stay limp on the floor like a wimp. Her legs shook under the strain, and she startled when a warm hand touched her shoulder. Kate frowned through the painful haze, aware enough to know that this was not Castle's strong hand. "Don't move, darling."

Oh. Martha.

Kate felt the floor shaking as hurried footsteps, Castle's, ran over to her. "Kate! What happened, are you okay? Don't move!"

"I'm...fine." She gritted through her teeth, although her voice wasn't convincing. At all. The detective bit back a gasp when Castle's hands gently probed her body as they tried to figure out the best way to get her back on her feet. "Rick. Just...pull me up,."

Castle clenched his jaw and carefully helped his partner to a more upright position, his hands holding her legs and waist awkwardly. Kate was almost all the way up when her stomach clenched and her muscles twitched in pain. She hated herself for the whimper that escaped her lips, but she was in too much pain to care too much as Castle picked her up in his arms and walked over to the couch. "No, not...not the couch. Your bed."

Leaving Martha behind, Castle quickly but cautiously walked to his room, slowing only when he reached the bed, delicately lying his girlfriend down. Kate immediately curled up on her side, her hands wrapping themselves around her stomach. "Kate, honey, let me take a look. Are you hurt?"

Kate rolled her eyes despite the pain. "I must have pulled a muscle or something, Castle, it's okay. I just need to relax a little."

"Those stupid crutches," the man muttered in annoyance, pacing the room to keep himself from hovering too much. "It's those damn crutches, isn't it? Stupid things are going to get thrown out-"

"No, no don't do that," Kate pleaded with him as she opened her eyes and focused on the anxious writer. "It was my fault, my cast slipped and-"

"You're not even supposed to use them, Kate! Not unless it's absolutely necessary." Castle reminded her tersely, stopping in front of her in a defensive position. "You've already used them for too long this morning. What the hell were you doing up again anyway? I thought you were going to take a nap."

Pushing herself up forcefully, Kate glared and swayed on the bed. Castle's hands were fussing over her a fraction of second later, stabilizing her. "I wanted something to drink." She mumbled, half irritated with the man's hand rubbing soothing circles down her back, half grateful to be able to lean against him. "I didn't think and I put my foot down when I stumbled."

"Kate..."

"Don't, okay?"

"Are you sure you're okay?" Castle asked once more as he gently cupped his partner's cheeks and softly pressed his lips against hers. His thumbs gently brushed the tears away as they kissed, the writer grinning as Kate opened her mouth to let her tongue run against his lower lip.

Castle heard her shaky sigh as his mouth moved up north to kiss the remaining tears away, the saltiness of the woman's cheeks and eyelashes breaking his heart.

They broke apart with a soft sigh, Kate resting her forehead on Castle's shoulder to calm her breathing down. "I'm sorry, I just...I, I'm so sick of feeling like this, Castle. It feels like last summer all over again."

"It isn't, sweetheart. You're not alone this time. I'm here."

The sob that had threatened to escape Kate's lips ever since leaving the garage finally got out. She was too tired to fight it anymore and her fall, a painful reminder of the recovery that was still far from over, had broke the last of her protective wall.

Castle's arms gathered up more tightly in his arms, pressing comforting kisses on her head and down to her temple as she cried.

* * *

Kate groaned when a small but strong hand gently shook her awake forty-five minutes later. The cop instinctively leaned into the touch before realizing the hand did not belong to her writer.

Opening her eyes groggily, Kate frowned at the woman sitting by her hip. "Lanie?"

The medical examiner smiled warmly as she brushed an errand lock of hair behind her friend's ear. "Hey, girl. Castle told me you had an impromptu meeting with the floor earlier?"

"Ugh. He did not call you about that, Lanie I'm fine." Kate argued as she tried to sit up. The ME thought otherwise and pushed her back down with a firm hand, pinning the detective to bed. "You _stay_ there. If you couldn't even walk back to bed, you're _not_ fine, Kate."

"I couldn't walk _before _anyway, Lanie." Kate retorted dryly as she glared at her best friend, annoyed at being chided.

Lanie rolled her eyes, nonplussed at the other woman's attitude. "You blurted out that you must've pulled a muscle. That's not good, sweetie, so now you better tell me where it hurts or do I have to ask Castle to come here and show me?"

The detective's sienna eyes almost bulged out of her head before a blush spread on her cheeks and down her neck, but her surprised expression quickly changed into a full glare. "You're not funny, Parish."

"You want a repeat from last year, Beckett? Just tell me where it hurts and I'll let you go back to sleep. In the arms of writer boy if you're nice enough."

"Lanie..." Kate warned her, but it was a lost cause. Once the doctor got that smug smile on her face, she was in for the win. "I think I pulled the scar when I fell, and I smashed my knee pretty good on the floor too." She finally admitted with a begrudging sigh.

Kate remained quiet as her friend examined her, wincing when Lanie ran her hands over her lower abdomen. "You know, as friends, you've seen me without clothes way too often." Kate said airily, breathing through her nose as her abdominal muscles clenched painfully under the doctor's probing.

"Stop getting hurt, and I'll stop seeing you naked." Lanie retorted with a scoff, sighing as she pulled her friend's shirt back down. "Nothing's wrong, you probably just twisted your body the wrong way when you fell, but I'll ask Castle to bring you the muscle relaxers the doctor prescribed you to help you. And no crutches at least until Friday."

"What? But we're Monday, Lanie!"

"You want me to make it to next Monday?" Both women glared and gauged each other a moment, until the cop grunted and looked away. "Great." Kate muttered, thoroughly annoyed.

Lanie watched her for a moment, concerned. "I have to go back but I can come back tonight, have a girl's night? I can kick Castle out and I'll bring Chinese, Italian, and that cheesecake from Junior's..."

The detective stopped sulking, her eyes glancing up at her friend with a hopeful glint. "Strawberry Shortcake Cheesecake?"

Lanie nodded, a smile on her face. "Sure. And we can watch a movie, or just talk. Whatever you want to do."

Kate bit her lip as she thought, her eyes focusing intently on her friend. "What do you say if we do a girl's night Friday, and tonight Castle stays and you could invite Ryan and Javi to come too?"

Lanie chuckled as she took Kate's hand and squeezed it. "Deal. But you know what would be even better? If you invited them yourself. They'd love that."

"Okay, I'll talk to Rick and call the guys later." Kate smiled, her eyes already brighter at the idea of spending the night with her friends. "Thanks for coming, Lanie. I hope Castle didn't sound too dramatic on the phone when he called you."

Lanie smirked, obviously knowing something that Kate didn't. "Honey, Castle didn't call me. Martha did."

* * *

Kate groaned when a hand woke her up. Again. "This is getting ridiculous." She mumbled sleepily as she turned her head and opened her eyes to meet a pair of soft blue orbs staring straight at her. "Oh. Good."

"Good?" Castle repeated with a laugh, confused until soft lips met his in a lazy yet amorous kiss. He hummed contently and grinned as he felt her slender hands making their way under his shirt, her fingernails grazing his ribs teasingly. "I thought you were Lanie again."

Castle burst out laughing and pulled back to stare into his girlfriend's eyes. "Lanie?"

"What? You guys keep waking me up today." Kate grumbled, but her lips quirked as she tried to fight a smile.

"I'm sorry, but I believe someone in this bed decided to invite the gang over tonight. What kind of hostess would you be if you weren't there to greet them?"

Kate's features lit up when she remembered the night's plans. Castle had been hesitating at first, thinking she needed to rest but he had finally sided with her, realizing that if the was feeling up to it, there was no reason for denying her to see their friends. Especially considering the fact that she hadn't been in a company mood in weeks.

The detective's smile was contagious and Castle find himself grinning like an idiot as he let his hand roam up and down his partner's arm. "Is there anything you want or need to do before they get here? We have about an hour left."

"Well," Kate began as she softly nibbled at the writer's jaw, biting and then soothing his skin with her tongue. "You could always help me shower, let you prove me I'm not an old grandma."


	7. Chapter 7

You never know how much real life gets in the way until it comes back to bite you in the ass. Sorry it took so long to update, hopefully it won't take that long next time. Don't forget to R&R, thanks! Happy summer!

* * *

The loft was quiet, the television humming in the background with no other sound filling the warm air. It was barely eleven in the morning, but the air in the loft was heavy, warm.

A slender pair of bare feet softly padded through the loft, the silent steps doing nothing to disturb the eerie quietness of the apartment.

One foot was slightly slower than the other, hesitant every time it touched the hardwood floor, but it moved forward stubbornly, refusing to be left behind. Every few steps, the toes, with toenails painted a bright shimmering purple, would stretch and then curl against the floor as if to make sure they were still moving properly.

The slower foot almost stumbled as it tried to go faster, and suddenly another pair of feet, those much bigger and heavier, moved closer to assist. They stopped abruptly as the feminine feet paused, tapped impatiently before resuming their journey.

* * *

Deep in concentration, her brows burrowed and biting her lower lip, Kate ignored the slight pull from her foot and kept her eyes on something only a few feet away from her now.

The floor was cool under her feet but she enjoyed the loft's warmth. She had been a big fan of air conditionings until she and Castle had almost frozen to death the year before. Heat had since become her best friend, and she had taken on other ways to stay comfortable during New York's summer heat.

Like today.

Her eyes locked on her prize, Kate bit her lip and pointedly ignored the pair of intense blue orbs that were focused on her every move. Only a few feet and..."Yes!"

Kate moaned shamelessly as she snatched the cold beverage from the kitchen counter and brought it to her lips, her eyes closing in pleasure. She could practically hear Castle shaking with laughter behind her but she didn't care. For now.

As she took another sip of her mocha frappucino, Kate felt arms sneaking their way around her waist and pulling her back against a warm chest. "I feel obligated to say I'm a little jealous of that frappucino right now. Those sounds you just made should only be heard when we're alone doing...things."

"We are doing things. I'm drinking a delicious, icy, caffeinated beverage." Kate pointed out with a smirk, gasping softly when the writer's hands found their way underneath her top. "I've walked around the apartment, twice, to get that frappucino, by the way. That's another thing I've done."

"I know, and I'm proud of you. You ditched the crutches faster than the doctor had predicted." Castle whispered to her ear, a delighted smile on his face as he gently tugged on the hand holding the cold beverage, watching intently as the straw left his girlfriend's lips with a soft 'pop'. "Hey!"

Castle leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers, swallowing Kate's protest as he ran his tongue on her lips. The writer moaned as he tasted the plethora of flavors on the cop's tongue, the usual warmth of Kate's mouth mixed with the sweet, cold aromas of coffee, chocolate and...mint. "I can't believe you had me to put mint in that thing."

"You like mint in your mochas too, writer boy." She talked back against his lips as her free arm came up and loosely wrapped itself around the writer's neck.

"Yeah. During the holidays. Mint in a frappucino? That's unnatural- Ow!"

Kate soothed the man's skin on his neck where she had just pinched him, a soft smirk on her face. "Unnatural? That from the guy who tried to make me eat a smorlette?" The fingers grazed his skin again, daring him to contradict her.

"Yes, Richard. Really. We all warned you that no good would come out of trying to feed the poor woman your repulsive concoction." Martha piped in as she walked in the kitchen, brightening the place with her emerald sundress and her mint colored pumps.

Castle gasped and pulled away to gawk at this mother. "Repulsive? Mother!"

Martha rolled her eyes, an habit that she had quit but came back full force ever since Kate had temporarily moved in with them. "You don't feed ungodly food to someone who's already down, dear. Don't you remember what happened when you begged her to at least try a bite?"

Castle glanced guiltily at Kate before nodding sheepishly. "Yeah, not the best idea ever." He conceded at the memory of seeing the cop fighting down waves of nausea for a few hours after having tasted the writer's infamous creation. "I'm still sorry about that."

"It's okay, don't worry about it. Just don't ever cook that thing ever again and we're good." Kate smiled gently as she gave the man a quick, chaste kiss and gave him a push so she could get back to drinking her coffee.

"You're pushing me away for coffee? No no no, not coffee, a frappucino? A _frappucino?_ Good luck taking a shower alone later, detective." Castle pouted as he walked around the counter to get started on lunch.

Kate smirked as she took an extra long sip of her beverage. "Ahh, that's too bad. But you know, I could always ask Lanie. She'd come and help me."

"Ooh, that is evil. Brilliant, yet evil, darling." Martha piped in with a broad smile on her face as Kate laughed at the slack-jawed look on Castle's face. Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge, Martha rounded the corner and stopped by Kate's side. Letting her hand rubbed the woman's back in the light yet comforting manner, the older woman smiled as she briefly hugged Kate. "It is a real pleasure to see you back on your feet, sweetheart."

Castle smiled as he watched his mother's retreating back. Martha had proven a priceless ally in the cop's recovery, giving the woman the motherly support she had so painfully missed ever since her mother's death. Martha Rogers had never been a traditional mother figure and it would be fair to assume that she and Johanna Beckett were complete opposites when it came to motherhood, but Castle would be forever grateful that the actress so willingly tend to the younger woman's need with as much heart as if she was her own daughter.

Switching her gaze back to Kate, Castle grinned at the look on his girlfriend's face. The detective was beaming, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. Castle would never know to what extent exactly Kate had suffered to her mother's disappearance, but if his mother could help soothing his partner's shattered heart with her quips and her newly found mother hen persona, then he would be more than grateful. "So. How about grilled cheese sandwiches and a salad for lunch?"

"Sounds good." Kate replied after a moment, her voice lower than usual. "Hey, do you think we could go up to the roof after? It's too beautiful out today to stay inside." She asked with a shy glance to the writer, her dark lashes blinking lazily as she removed the lid on her drink and, after a brief hesitation, dunked a finger in the whipped cream and slowly licked it off her finger.

Castle shook his head and focused back on the woman, repressing the thoughts of what he would love to be doing to her right now with that whipped cream. Clearing his throat a little too loudly, Castle missed Kate's smirk as he turned around to grab a spoon and, a little too forcefully, all but shoved it in the glass. "Yes. Of course. Oh, you could take that opportunity to- um, never mind."

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just..." Castle hesitated, doubting his proposition would be taken well. "Lanie said it'd be good for your skin to be exposed to fresh air more. You know, instead of being confined under fabric all the time."

Kate raised an eyebrow at the shorts and the thin cotton tank top she was wearing. "You just want to see me in a bathing suit, aren't you?"

"Come on, I've only seen you wear one once, and it was years ago." He argued weakly while he took the cheese out of the fridge and began to make the sandwiches.

A perfectly shaped eyebrow rose, incredulous. "You see me naked every day, Castle."

Castle choked on a piece of cheese. "Yeah, but it's not the same." He coughed, his eyes watering, his hand reaching blindly for Kate's beverage. "Hey!"

"I'm choking here!"

Kate let Castle grab her drink but watched him with narrowed eyes as he drank. "Don't drain it, stud, or you'll have to go and get me another one."

Castle rolled his eyes and grimaced as he put the glass down. "Eww, Pepper Jack cheese and mint? Worse combo ever!"

"Again with the mint! You know what, you cook and I'll go change before I change my mind and decided to nap all afternoon. Alone." She added after a beat, cutting Castle off.

"Will you at least wear a bathing suit?"

Kate waved her cast in the air and groaned as she dragged herself into the bedroom.

* * *

"I told you it was hot."

There was a glare directed at him behind those sunglasses, Castle knew. Just like he knew that the detective was too hot with his shirt still on, but that she was too stubborn to take it off. It was a white, thin shirt that she had wanted to use as a way to cover herself while moving from the loft up to the roof, but then she had refused to let go of it, arguing that it wasn't _that _hot outside. "Fine, you cook in that thing while I go and admire the view over there."

Castle slipped his sandals back on and walked over the other side of the roof, where they had a clear shot of Central Park. There was traffic in the area, but not many pedestrians, the park being closed because of the heat wave.

Standing still, letting the warm air swirl around him, the writer didn't hear footsteps coming his way until they were already by his side. Castle peeked from the side of his sunglasses to check and, sure enough, his partner had finally shed the shirt and was standing by his side, only clad in a bikini.

It wasn't one that left little imagination to the observer's mind, but at least it wasn't a one piece either. He knew that was what Kate had wanted to wear but the fabric had felt too tight around her ribs and too rough for her still tender skin, forcing her into a two pieces instead.

Castle bit back a smile as he appraised his girlfriend's deep purple bathing suit. The color suited her perfectly and made her light brown hair seemed even more golden than usual as the sun hit the long curls framing her face. The way her arms and shoulders were taut told him the cop wasn't happy about being that much exposed, even though they were alone.

Under the harsh light of the sun, Castle could nonetheless breathe in relief as he took in Kate's scars: the bullet mark and the first surgery scar spread along her ribs had faded remarkably, much to the woman's delight. She had come to accept them but he knew they still bothered her from time to time, especially whenever the weather got too warm for turtlenecks and high collar shirts.

The latest surgery mark, a few inches over her right hip, still stood brighter against her alabaster skin, but it was healing well. The special ointment Castle had discovered through the help of one of his 'guys' had helped immensely with the healing process and had also minimized the scarring, something Kate was particularly grateful when it came to the road rash she suffered on her side, shoulder and legs. A few more months and, if she was lucky, there would be no scarring, only a slight blemish of the skin that would disappear as well over time.

"Stop thinking so hard, Castle."

Kate's voice snapped him back to the present and he turned sideways to face her as his arm wrapped itself around her waist in a warm but loose hug. "I love you."

He watched as Kate bit her lip, but the corner of her mouth was twitching. "You love me, huh?"

"Like it is news to you, woman." Castle barely avoided Kate's cast as it swung in the air to smack him in the chest."I tell you that I love you and your way to say it back is to hit me? I'm appalled. Shocked."

"Stop whining, you big baby. It doesn't suit you." Kate whispered as she brushed her lips against his in a short but sweet kiss. "I love you too, Rick."

Castle grinned as his hands moved south his partner's body and stopping only when they found purchase on warm, silky skin. "Let go of my ass, Castle."

"Yes, that'd be good, please."

Castle and Kate jerked apart, mortified. "Alexis!"


	8. Chapter 8

It is crazy how time flies by. This story has gone completely AU, but I'm glad it did because this season has been, so far, nothing but amazing.

There will be only one chapter or two more left, because it is time to wrap this baby up. As usual, not beta-ed, so my apologies if there's any mistakes and/or typos. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

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The homicide floor was quiet at this time of night. Only a few beat cops were around and even less detectives were still present, most desks deserted for the night.

Every once in a while though, a bark of laughter would escape the break room and attract attention, but never for long. Cops walking by would glance inside before going their way, knowing this was a special night.

Sitting comfortably around mountains of food, the core of the 12th Precinct's finest were celebrating the first day back of one of their own, the best way they knew how: talking murder, cashing on bets while inhaling Chinese food and beer.

"Come on, bro, it's us. Just say it so _she _can stop gloating." Esposito all but shouted as he pointed to a smirking, definitely gloating Lanie.

"Sorry, man. Special Forces or not, you've got nothing on that one." Castle muttered as he subtly cocked his head in Beckett's direction.

"Hey!"

Castle smiled sweetly and kissed Kate on the cheek, huffed in surprise as the woman's cast hit him square in the chest. "Kate!" He whined with a wince that wasn't all fake. "When are you getting that thing off, already?"

Kate glanced down at her slightly worn cast and grinned. "Thursday morning."

After a month of sick leave, the detective was finally back at the precinct. She was stuck behind a desk, still hadn't been cleared to go back on the field, but behind a desk was better than going crazy at her partner's loft. "By the way, we meant to ask if you guys wanted to get together on Saturday night, so we can do a 'hey, I'm back at my place' kind of dinner?"

All noticed the strained smile on Castle's lips, but wisely kept their mouths shut. "Sure, sweetie, it sounds great." Lanie was the first to answer, nudging Esposito under the table.

"Sure, why not." He agreed as he shot the M.E. a glare. "You going back home already? Aren't you going to miss writer boy?"

"Shut up, Javi." The woman's words might have been harsh but the blush covering her cheeks still betrayed her. Kate was in no way subtle as she glanced at Castle, her face reddening even more when she noticed the way he was staring back.

"Oh, come on!"

Both partners snapped out of it, simultaneously turning heads to three pair of smirking, if not slightly frustrated eyes. "Just say it already!"

Kate chuckled and ran her cast free hand down Castle's arms, letting her fingers graze the soft fabric of his shirt. "Whatever do you mean, Ryan?"

Ryan gawked a few seconds before finding his voice. "Velasquez heard you! Can't you just admit it so this madness can stop?"

Kate smiled toothily, her eyes sparkling. "Nope."

Frustrated groans echoed through the room, making the detective grin even more widely. "What's the big deal anyway, Espo? The bet's off now, have been for weeks."

Esposito quirked an eyebrow as he shared Ryan a knowing look. "The one on you guys getting together is off, true."

The cryptic comment got Kate and Castle's attention, but not for the same reasons.

"What?!"

"Really?!"

Kate glared and sat straighter in her chair. "What other bets are there?"

"You want to know, we want a kiss." Lanie smirked from her seat, unwavering when her best friend's incredulous gaze fell on her. "What? No one, and believe me when I say that _no one _has seen you guys kiss yet, and you really want me to cash in on that one."

Castle was about to argue, since the medical examiner had seen them kissing on more than one occasion before, when Kate interrupted him with a hand on his thigh. "You've seen us kiss before, Lanie."

"But not in public! Come on, I need a new couch! And besides, if I don't win the next in line is Edwards." Lanie shuddered.

"Edwards from Vice?" Kate grimaced and shuddered as well.

Castle glanced between the two women curiously, his own hand tracing soothing patterns on his partner's wrist. "We've been together for months, why place your bet so far away?"

Lanie smirked as she shot Kate an amused, if not slightly exasperated look. "Can you blame me, with that one?" She said to Castle, expertly avoiding the napkin the detective threw at her in retaliation. "Your aim is terrible, sweetie."

"Why don't you come closer then?" Kate replied, eyes too innocent for her own good.

"Just kiss already!"

Esposito and Ryan gasped when they saw their friends wavering. "Wait! How come she gets to cash in on her bet, and not ours?"

"Well, mine technically." Ryan reminded Esposito, ignoring the Latino detective's warning glare.

"Because I've never called Castle 'honey', Javi." Kate shook her head and quietly went back to her plate even as she felt the writer's eyes on her.

Kate shivered when she felt her partner's breath in her ear, their friends' whining fading away as she focused on his deep voice. "I really want to kiss you right now."

"Not here, Castle." Kate's voice broke on the writer's name and she cursed him for turning her on so easily. "Not in public."

Castle grinned smugly as his hand became more adventurous on her leg, his fingers stroking the inside of her thigh teasingly. "They're not public, Kate. And you know they won't shut up unless we do something drastic."

"Like show them mom and dad kissing?" She whispered in his ear, now grinning as well.

Castle answered by bringing his lips to hers and kissed her softly, languidly.

They didn't notice the voices quieting down as both rejoiced in each other's warm lips sweetly pressed on one another. Kate's hand came up to grab Castle's shirt as his tongue ran across her bottom lip, seeking entrance. The detective greedily accepted, if her pleased moan was any indication.

Kate chuckled against Castle's mouth when she heard a chorus of shouts and grossed out exclamations, complaining of mom and dad 'giving them a freak show.'

"Thanks, I think I've got enough, you can stop now. Unless you want me to cash in on another kind of bet."

Lanie's voice cut through the moment and the couple broke away, but not before one last slow kiss, just for good measure.

Kate's face was flushed and her eyes were bright, and she shamelessly licked her lips before staring down her still stunned partners. "If I knew that's what it took to make you shut up, I would've started doing this a long time ago."

Castle burst out laughing and kissed the corner of her mouth, his hand coming up to cup her cheek. "Told you it would work."

"I don't care about them, I just really wanted to kiss you too." She admitted with a soft grin, pointedly ignoring their friends. With a smile Kate got to her feet and gathered her things."It's getting late, you ready to go, sweetie?"

Four set of eyes fell on her and she rolled her eyes. "Told you I hadn't called him 'honey.'"

Castle didn't lose any time and followed her to the door, his face beaming. "Night guys."

The two remaining detectives and Lanie watched them leave, all of them sporting matching smirks when Castle's head suddenly peeked inside and mouthed an excited 'sweetie.' with a huge grin on his face. 'Sweetie!'

"Castle!"


End file.
